TALES OF A POST-GRAD INTERN: “Part III: The Phone Interview”

Introducing two new members of the Radiant Veracity team: Stephanie Perrett and Beth Farrar (from left to right) are currently working with Stephanie Lloyd as two of three communications interns. One of their weekly intern assignments is to chronicle their experiences as a regular blog series on Radiant Veracity. As recent college graduates and active job seekers, topics will range from how they met (they’ve been friends for two years) to their weekly assignments, victories and struggles. The following is their third part in the series.

We left our series as Beth and Stephanie were anxiously anticipating their individual phone interviews with Stephanie Lloyd to be the newest (and first-ever) interns at Radiant Veracity. Good friends from college, Beth and Stephanie had both responded to a Tweet from Stephanie Lloyd, requesting help with her entrepreneurial endeavors. Stephanie P., not wanting to steal a job opportunity away from Beth, decided not to tell Beth that she was interviewing for the position as well. Less than a week after the initial Tweet, Beth and Stephanie P. spoke individually over the phone with Stephanie L. about the opportunity.

For Stephanie P., the phone interview went seamlessly. In fact, the term “interview” doesn’t even properly describe the conversation that Stephanie P. and Stephanie L. had that Wednesday. After following each other on Twitter for months now, it seemed as if the two had already met, making the conversation comfortable and casual. Stephanie L. briefed Stephanie P. on her company, Radiant Veracity, as well as her other endeavors– highlighting the areas in which she needed the most help. Stephanie P. formally introduced herself, her skills and her career expectations – agreeing that she would be willing to help Stephanie L. wherever needed.

The fantastic thing about the conversation: The two women’s honesty with each other.

Stephanie P. (without trying to seem too desperate) relayed her struggles with being a recent communications graduate in a tough economy. Stephanie L. relayed her inability to pay an intern, but also added that she believed the internship would pay in non-conventional ways (i.e. networking, attending job search interventions at no cost, etc.). Both Stephanie’s agreed that the position was part-time and the importance that Stephanie P. not only network and build her portfolio, but find a full-time career – as well as helping with Stephanie Lloyd’s business.

Beth had much the same experience a day later. All her anxieties were immediately put to ease as she and Stephanie L. began laughing and joking moments after the phone stopped ringing. Both remarked on the state of the job market and how interesting it is to see more and more graduates taking intern positions to gain experience and build their professional network.

It was obvious from the outset of the conversation that Stephanie L. firmly believed in creating a mutually beneficial arrangement among herself her interns–each helping the other whenever possible. It was refreshing for Beth to encounter an employer with drive and creativity, but also flexibility, humor and sincerity.

At one point, Stephanie L. mentioned a meeting she had set-up with another Stephanie later in the week (Stephanie Frost), and she went on to question how Beth and Stephanie had previously met. Major confusion set in as Beth frantically racked her brain as to how she might know this particular Stephanie. With all the Stephanie’s in and around the Radiant Veracity family, it’s easy to see how a newcomer would be at a slight loss, but other, more mysterious forces were definitely at work here.

Quite a few jumbled words were exchanged before the name “Perrett” was finally slipped in some small pause. It would be an understatement to say that Beth was shocked. After sitting next to each other at the University of Georgia graduation ceremony in May, Beth and Stephanie P. hadn’t found a chance to catch up at all until now…when they had applied for the same internship. We won’t even try to calculate the odds.

After a few follow-up phone calls, Beth finally pieced together the whole story, and Stephanie L.’s first two interns were primed and thoroughly excited for the face-to-face planning meeting scheduled at the end of the same week.

Moral of the Story: Be yourself. Don’t steal opportunities from your friends (or at least be nice about it). Be flexible. Ensure your job opportunities are mutually beneficial and that you’re comfortable with them. Be honest. Find opportunities you’re excited about.

[Stephanie Lloyd here] Stay tuned to learn more about Stephanie and Beth’s internship adventures! Future installments include: